Saturday, 30 December 2017

Hello Lovelies,
on Thursday I could have gone walking with my walking group. I certainly needed the miles for my goal to walk 1000 miles this year. Last year I had completed the challenge by late November, but not this year. By mid November the 1000 miles looked a like it would slip through my fingers, but somehow I've managed to chip away at the final 100 miles or so and as I write this post I have just two miles left to walk... and one more day to do that in. Yay.

On Thursday, with Hubby and the boys at home, I couldn't really settle to leaving them all day to go out with my group. But I hoped to fit in a couple of local walks during the day. I woke just before 8am and looked out to see a beautiful frosty morning. Time for a speedy breakfast and then get out there. I dodged the frozen puddles and walked towards the sunrise. Everybody else at home was still in bed.

By the stables the steam from the muck-heap had a golden glow :0)

And the ice crystals glinted in the first shafts of sunlight.

My footsteps made a crunch on the frozen grass.

and a solitary bird sang in the spindly branches of the overgrown hedgerow.

The fields were white.

and so was the road.

A little further along the road I spotted two pheasants before they spotted me, that's a rare occurrence.

I just love the icy leaves.

and frozen puddles. No mud today. Hurray.

When I saw a little Robin along the footapth I recalled that I had finally remembered to bring some bird seed with me. There you go Robin.

The sun was getting higher and the sky was cloudless, but the path was still in deep shadow.

Here the sunlight gave the landscape a golden glow.

And here I smiled at the tiny bird footprints in the ice.

Time to leave the rest of that birdseed.

Somebody else was enjoying their breakfast.

Moo to you too.

My favourite sort of sign

I take only photographs and leave only boot prints :0)

More ponies enjoying the hay

I love the light in this picture.

One chap came over to say hello. It's always nice to see such well looked after horses.

and there's plenty more fodder to last the winter.

Time to head up the icy lane

and into the village. The yarn shop window display made me smile.

By this time the sun was getting higher and melting the frost on the church roof.

I was home by 10am and happy to make breakfast for the family knowing I had already walked 4 miles. My Christmas mantel is looking lovely this year.

The snowy paintings mum has given me really add to the festive scene.

And the small bunch of scented narcissi I picked up in the supermarket are making me smile.

such happy flowers.

Later in the day, after some housework, I managed another walk. This time with hubby and eldest. I was happy to clock up the same amount of miles as I would have walked if I had gone out with the walking group, but fitted it around family stuff too.

It was such a perfect winters day, I think this could be my favourite walking weather.

I hope you will pop back soon to see where I walked the final miles of 2017. Hopefully it will involve moorland and views. So exciting :0)